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History of The Paper Cup

History of the Paper Cup

The exact origins of the paper cup seem to be unknown. Who first thought of making a disposable beverage holder out of paper may never be known. What is known is that around the beginning of the 1900s, paper cups gained popularity when people began to realize that sharing drinking glasses also meant sharing germs.

In 1907, a man named Lawrence Luellen developed what later became known as the Dixie Cup to help improve public hygiene. He then developed a water-vending machine with disposable cups and began to educate the public on the harms of sharing drinking glasses. As a matter of fact, Dixie Cups were originally called "heath kups" because their original purpose was to promote public hygiene.

In the century since, the paper cup has evolved from simply a health solution to an everyday convenience object. Each day, millions of paper cups are used so that people can take their sodas, coffees and other beverages on the run. They are also used at social gatherings for ease of clean up when the gathering ends. Instead of having a multitude of glasses and mugs to clean at the end of an event, paper cups can simply be thrown into the trash.

Types of Paper Cups

Cold Cups are made to handle cold beverages only. They often have a waxy coating inside to keep the paper from becoming wet and collapsing from the absorption of liquid. Cold paper cups also come in several sizes and designs. Paper cups come in sizes from the tiny Dixie Cups to large 20 or 24 ounce big cups found at convenience stores for soda. They also come in a variety of designs, including those for children's themed birthday parties, those bearing restaurant or store logos, and everyday designs such as flowers. The variety of designs on paper cups is endless.

Hot cups are paper cups designed to hold hot beverages such as coffee, tea, or hot chocolate. They are specially made to withstand the heat that cold cups cannot. Hot cups can be insulated to help keep beverages warm. Like cold cups, they come in a variety of sizes and designs. A recent development for hot cups has been the hot paper cup sleeve. This sleeve is slid onto the cup to help prevent fingers from getting burned by the heat of the beverage.

The Paper Cup Company sells Catersave 12/5/08